Return to Me
by hook617
Summary: He will find a way to come back to her, she knew it. TWO-SHOT.
1. Chapter 1

The ocean lapped at Emma's bare feet as she stepped out toward the sea. She stared out toward the empty horizon. No boats, no sails, no Jolly Roger. Just an endless sea. Every day she came out here looking for them to appear, every day the same thing. Nothing. Emma felt a tug at her chest as she gripped the bottle in her hand. She took the letter out of her pocket and gave it a small kiss before slipping it into the bottle and capping it.

"Find us," she whispered to the bottle before releasing it into the ocean. She watched it bob through the waves as it went farther and farther out, hoping to see it get pulled under the waves.

* * *

_"Emma, I have to stay," Hook explained as he urged her toward the swirling portal. David was carrying an unconscious Mary-Margaret to Neal and passing her gently into his arms. She had been hit by an arrow, fortunately without dream shade, but with a poison that knocked her out. Gold had the antidote in his shop, but they had to move fast._

_"Hook, no," Emma pleaded._

_"Emma, your father can't leave Neverland. I know your mother wanted to stay with him, but since that can't happen, I must. I can't leave someone to fend for themselves in Neverland again," Hook explained as he cupped her cheek, trying to soothe her quivering lip. "This isn't goodbye. I'll find a way to bring him back. I'll find a way back to you."_

_"Killian…" She was cut off by his lips crashing to hers._

_"I love you, Emma," he said before running back toward fighting off the swarm of lost boys with David, keeping them back from the portal before it closed._

_"Mom," Henry yelled from behind her, pulling her toward the portal. Emma kept her eyes on Hook and David until the swirling green portal enveloped her into a flash of light._

* * *

A soft gurgling distracted her from her memories. As she peered down into the moby wrap that was draped around her, a pair of tiny blue eyes gazed back up at her. Those eyes, they always had a way to make her feel warm and break her heart at the same time. Liam had his father's eyes. She patted her newborn to soothe him, but at that moment, she wasn't sure who needed the soothing more- him or her. Liam snuggled more into his mother and closed his eyes once more.

* * *

_That night, the night of danger, truth and passion, the night their son was formed. Emma knew they shouldn't. They were in Neverland for goodness sake! Hook and Emma had been broken off from the group by an ambush of Lost Boys, trapped in the very Echo Caves where Hook had confessed his love for her. As she banged on the thick walls of the sealed cave, Emma's resolve to keep her own walls up broke. She told him everything, how her heart was conflicted, how she couldn't stop thinking of his kiss on her lips. The fact that Neal was back made her heart pain with guilt, and it was only Hook's loving presence that helped that burden lift. He had been her strength, her anchor, her greatest ally in finding her son, and how she couldn't imagine her life now without him. In that moment of pure honesty, he kissed her, and for one night, it was just the two of them. They couldn't understand why the next morning it was so easy to leave the Echo Caves when they had been hopelessly trapped the night before. Neither of them said a word of what happened, because once they stepped outside they both knew- they had to find Henry and get home. Just before they reached the camp, Hook gently took her hand and kissed it, telling her once more that he loved her, promising her he would never leave her side, and that he wouldn't rest until she was reunited with her son. Three weeks after they got home from Neverland, she found out she was pregnant. Emma Swan was carrying the child of Captain Hook._

* * *

Emma's eyes once more drifted back to the bottle. Ariel had been a great help in calling mermaids to take messages to Hook and Charming, but she could never be certain they'd reach him. Even Ariel warned- mermaids were not to be trusted. There were collectors, sirens and even killers among them. You never knew what kind of mermaid they were until it was too late. However, when Emma would see a bottle being pulled down into the sea, she would get a flicker of hope that somehow, the bottle would reach Killian. This bottle was now a faint dot on the horizon, well past the border of the cloaking spell. It had, unfortunately, like so many others destined to get lost at sea. Emma looked down and patted Liam.

"He knows, buddy," she said softly. "He knows we love him." Liam started snoring as he curled into his mother. It was a soft, breathy snore and it made Emma's heart leap. Even at only two weeks, Emma was discovering all these little noises and movements that Liam would make. She wanted to capture ever single one of them for Hook, but a part of her held back thinking he'll enjoy discovering them himself when he comes home. The sensible part of her said this was purely wishful thinking, but her heart felt like she was just being honest with herself. Emma sighed as she started picking up her flip flops in one hand and trying to reach for her diaper bag with the other hand. She stumbled a bit as she suddenly became unbalanced between reaching for the two things while having an infant strapped to her.

"I got it, Mom!" she heard Henry say as he ran toward her from across the beach. He scooped up the the large bag of toys from the sand and dusted it off before throwing the bag over his shoulder.

"Nice timing. Thanks, kid," Emma said appreciatively. Henry had been a marvel of a big brother. He had originally been sad when it had been clear that his parents were not getting back together, but the knowledge that he was going to be a big brother gave him a renewed sense of responsibility. He had been there with Emma for everything. He'd even tell Liam stories about Killian every night at bedtime, even though he only knew a few from experience and from his book. He made sure that Liam knew that Captain Hook was the good guy and Peter Pan was the villain. Even though Emma knew it was too early for it, Liam would seem to smile at Henry when he would scrunch up his face at the mention of Peter Pan. Emma loved watching her sons together. It simply took her breath away.

"Henry said he had to be with you today," Neal said from behind her as he walked down the dunes with his hands shoved in his pockets. "He said he thinks today is the day." Liam opened his eyes and stuck his tongue out at Neal, who in turn reached out his finger for Liam's tiny hands to grab. "Hey there, little sailor."

* * *

_Neal scrubbed his face hard with his hand as Emma watched him from across the table. She could already feel the rejection in the air. Neal leaned into his hand and drummed his fingers on the table with his other hand._

_"Wow," Neal said. "I wasn't expecting….__**that**__...when you said we needed to talk."_

_"I just thought you ought to know," Emma said._

_"And of course it's not… it would be impossible….because we haven't," Neal said, stumbling to get the words out._

_"No," Emma said softly._

_"Hook."_

_"Yeah," Emma breathed out. "Neal, I just need to know…"_

_"Are you asking me to raise the child of Captain Hook," Neal asked, cutting her off._

_"No! No, Neal, I just," Emma started to get out before the tears started flowing. Neal slid over to her side and wrapped his arms around her. Despite all the hurt, all the pain, they still had a connection. She knew he would always be there for her if she asked. "I just don't know how I can do this alone."_

_"You're not alone," Neal said. "You've got David and Snow, you have Henry. We're all here for you, Emma."_

_"I know," Emma sniffled softly. "But just so we're clear, we're..."_

_"Yeah," Neal said. "Just friends." Neal was true to his word. He would come in the morning to help Henry get ready for school so Emma could focus on getting her morning nausea under control. He would pick Henry up from school and meet Emma at the doctors when she had ultrasound appointments, but Neal would always wait in the lobby. When Emma went into labor at 2am, he came over and stayed with Henry, bringing him to the hospital first thing in the morning. He was there for her, but also kept a respectful distance when it came to the baby. Because, deep down, it killed him that her baby wasn't his, and it was clear her heart was still in Neverland. His focus now was Henry and keeping on good terms with Emma so she'd stay in his life, and that was all he could ask for._

* * *

"Well, there's still time before you have to go see Archie," Emma said. "How about the three of us go to Granny's."

"Sounds great," Neal said. "What do you say, pal?"

"We need to wait another minute," Henry said, looking out toward the water. Neal and Emma sighed as they watched their son. Ever since Neverland, Henry seemed to age rapidly before their eyes. He seemed wiser beyond his years, even though he already was a brilliant boy before. Henry seemed to be more in tune with the rhythm of what little magic there was in Storybrooke. It worried both Neal and Emma a bit because of how much it reminded them of how Peter Pan could feel Neverland, but it was Henry. He had been through so much already, they didn't want to push him to look deeper into what might be happening to him. Instead, they just let him do what he needed to do when he became focused like this, which was usually resulted in being the best call to make.

"Mom, look," Henry said as he pointed out toward the water. Emma still stood frozen, not wanting to turn around, not wanting all her hope to be dashed if she turned around to see open water. Henry started running back toward the shore line. "He did it!" Emma turned around slowly, clutching Liam as she turned. There, moving grandly through the waters, was the sails of the Jolly Roger. Even from a distance, they could see David waving from the mast as Killian sailed the ship straight toward them.

"Emma! Henry!" David was waving his arms fiercely, looking as healthy as the day they left for Neverland. As the ship grew closer, David and Killian ran around the ship to slow it down and prepared to lower the anchor. Killian's eyes never left hers, even from across the sea. He moved about the ship he had memorized and was solely focused on her and the bundle in her arms. His smile could not have been wider.

"I'll call Snow," Neal said as he whipped out his cell phone and abruptly walked back toward his car. He knew a reunion was coming, and he wanted to give Emma some space. She had to admit, she was relieved he knew to let them have this moment. Killian didn't take time to pull the Jolly to the harbor, which was about another mile down the coast. Instead, he and David dropped anchor by the beach and lowered the dinghy, both of them paddling fiercely to the shore. Henry ran toward his Grandfather, who scooped him up and spun him around.

"Gramps! You did it!"

"Yeah, we did," David said, ruffling his hair. As happy as Emma was to have her father back, she was frozen in place as Hook stepped out of the dinghy. His hair was longer, his scruff now more resembled a full beard, and his face and arms had a few more scars than she remembered. But he was here, only a few feet away. He stood still, probably just as much in disbelief as she was that his feet were planted on Storybrooke's shores, but as she took a single step toward him, he ran at her in a full sprint.

* * *

**A/N: I'm back! Season 3 has been so intense and when I do get an idea for a story, I start to get ideas for several stories to the point I can't figure out what to focus on. I thought I'd at least share this one. **

**This is a two-parter. This one focused on Emma, the next one focused on Killian. Feel free to follow/favorite. Hope you enjoy it!**


	2. Chapter 2

He captured her in his arms and kissed her fiercely, careful not to crush the child that was still wrapped around her torso. Once the initial need to feel their lips connect reached reality, Killian felt her lips melt beneath his. Oh how he missed that amazing mouth! When he broke the kiss, he pressed his forehead to hers, cupping her cheek as if it were a lifeline.

"I found you," he whispered breathlessly.

"Yeah, you did," Emma said, chuckling through her tears. Liam cooed from inside the wrap, and Hook looked down at the baby in wonderment. As the tiny blue eyes looked back up at his father's, Killian's heart felt like it was melting inside his chest. He had never seen a more beautiful sight. "Is this…Is this our child?"

* * *

_Killian threw another stone into Mermaid lagoon, lost in thought. It had been months since everyone left for Storybrooke, leaving him and David on the island. His mind was constantly on Emma, wondering if she was safe, if she was with Neal. He threw another stone into the lagoon at that thought, a bit harder that time. David approached from the other side of the lagoon with some canteens._

_"These should last us a while," David said, handing two full canteens to Hook. He got up from the rock he was sitting on and slung them over his shoulder._

_"Thanks, mate," Hook said somberly. David gave Hook a reassuring slap on the arm._

_"We'll get home," David said._

_"You say that everyday," Hook said. "After spending a few months with you, Charming, I can see why Emma said your optimism is exhausting." David chuckled and the two of them started to head back towards the tree house. Since Tinkerbell left for Storybrooke, it was one of their few safe havens. There was still a protection spell over it, and either it was strong enough to keep out the shadow or Peter Pan just thought allowing them to believe they were safe somewhere would prove to make a fun game for later. Either way, it worked for now. _

_Both of them stopped to turn as they heard a large splash from behind them. A mermaid was now perched on the very rock that Hook had been sitting on. She was, of course, alluringly beautiful with long dark hair and eyes that seemed to look right through you into your most secret thoughts. Neither of the men were at all interested, especially since their time on the island taught them to keep their distance from mermaids as much as possible. The mermaids seemed to know about Regina turning one of their sisters into wood, and the last thing Hook and Charming needed was clashing with more enemies._

_"Hello, Hook," she purred._

_"Keep walking," David instructed as they started to walk away._

_"Don't you want your trinket," the mermaid asked. Hook turned back to her and shrugged._

_"I don't believe I've dropped anything, dear," Hook said flatly. "I'm not falling for that one." The mermaid held up a bottle and ran her fingers along it._

_"One of my sisters used to be a collector. When I found it floating along in that distant realm she went to...," she said, smiling to herself as now they were visibly interested. "Well, maybe I should have just let it sink like the rest."_

_"What do you mean," Hook said through his gritted teeth._

_"She's trying to trick you," David warned._

_"Not at all," the mermaid purred. "I just have a soft spot for love, you see. The blonde girl who fought Pan sends them every day. I thought it would be nice of me to deliver at least one." She tossed it onto the beach a few steps in front of Hook. "Let me know if you want more. I've found plenty." With a flip and a splash, she was gone back into the lagoon. Hook quickly scooped it up and hastened to pull the stopper off, but Charming stilled his hand._

_"Not here," David instructed before both of them sprinted back towards Tinkerbell's old treehouse. Once "safe" again, David uncorked the bottle for Hook after he struggled to open it, even after using his teeth. He dumped the contents out into his hand and froze._

_"What? What does she say," Hook pleaded._

_"It's not a letter," David said softly. "It's a picture." Hook looked over his shoulder at the blurry black and white photo in front of him._

_"A picture of what? Is it a map? A clue of how to get home," Hook said as he snatched it from David's hand and searched the photograph._

_"Hook," David said. "It's an ultrasound photo." Hook turned the photo over and then back before looking at David in confusion._

_"It's just a picture. I don't hear anything." David put his hand on Hook's shoulder and gave him a small smile._

_"It's a picture of the baby growing inside Emma." Now it was Hook's turn to be frozen. "Look," David said as he pointed toward the photograph. "The text at the top of the photograph has Emma's name. And this," he said gesturing toward the center of the photo "Looks like a little hand." Hook stared down at the photo in wonderment. Now that he looked at it, he could see an outline of a little person. And the hand, it was now clear as day. Five little fingers were waving at him._

_"And….the text written there…" Hook said, looking for David at confirmation since his head was swimming._

_"Yeah," David said. "It says 'Hi Daddy'. You're a father, Hook." Killian let out a long sigh of amazement that he didn't realize he was holding in._

_"I'm going to be a father," Killian said in disbelief._

_"By the way, I'm going to ignore the fact that obviously this happened while we were together on the island. And if this wasn't such an important moment for you, I would punch you," David said, trying to push the smile off his face._

_"Thanks, mate," Hook said, his eyes never leaving the photograph, tears forming in his eyes. "I'm coming, Emma. I'm coming for our family," he whispered allowed to the photograph._

* * *

"William David Jones," Emma finished. "Liam."

"After my brother," Killian asked in disbelief.

"I'm sorry, I thought about naming him Killian, but I knew I couldn't say your name everyday unless you were here, so I thought…" He silenced her with a kiss and wrapped both arms around her and their child.

"It's a beautiful tribute lass, one I am ever so grateful for," he said. "It's a good, strong name." Hook looked down in amazement as the child look back at him with eyes exactly like his own. Tears started to form in his eyes as he reached to caress the baby's velvet skin. "Swan, may I…"

"Of course," she said, blinking back tears as she started to unwrap Liam from her. Killian quickly unlatched his hook, letting it fall into the sand as he desperately stretched out his arms. He needed to hold his son like he needed air. Emma gently laid Liam across Killian's left arm so he could support his head with his right hand. Killian chuckled warmly as he stared down at his son, gently caressing his small tuft of black hair with his thumb. Emma could not stop the tears from flowing if she tried.

He was perfect. Their son was perfect. He was the perfect mix of Emma and himself. Never in three hundred years did he think he could hold a treasure so perfect. He and Milah had talked of children, but Milah confessed that if they had, it would feel like a replacement to Baelfire, and she couldn't do it. When she died, so had his hope for love, let alone children. But Emma, she had already given him so much. She opened his heart, let him see hope in his life again, and now- the most beautiful child he had ever beheld. It was almost too much. What had a lowly villain like himself done to deserve such perfection?

"Ahoy there, Liam," Killian said softly, which made Emma chuckle a bit. Of all the first things to say to his son, of course he'd choose pirate lingo. "I will never leave you or your mother and brother again, I promise." Killian leaned down to place a gentle kiss on his son's soft forehead, nuzzling his nose with Liam's. Liam shifted in his sleepy state and cuddled into Killian's chest, stretching his fingers and stretching at Killian's chest. Liam sighed contentedly against his father's chest, as if he knew he was always meant to be there. _Here come the tears again_. Emma looped her hands into the crook of his arm and he leaned his head on hers. "He's absolutely beautiful, lass," Killian choked out.

"David," Snow cried as she ran across the beach. David broke away from his grandson to capture Snow in his arms and spin her around, placing her back on the sand and pulling her into a passionate embrace.

"Snow," he breathed as he pulled his lips from her. "I love you so much."

"I knew you'd be back, I just knew it," she said, letting the tears flow and kissing him again.

"How were you able to leave the island," Henry asked. David and Killian exchanged glances.

* * *

_"We're wasting our time with Pixie Hallow, mate," Hook said. "Remember the last time we tried to gain audience with the Queen? I barely got within twenty feet of Pixie Hallow before we were almost blasted to the hereafter." David turned abruptly, causing Hook to stumble back._

_"Do you want to get home?"_

_"That's a stupid question- you know I do."_

_"Then we have to try harder. Do you want to miss the birth of your child? Because, trust me, missing any part of their lives will tear you up forever," David fired back. Hook nodded in agreement and gestured for David to continue. Charming took the lead and they managed to get to the foot of the twisted tree without incident. The two stared up at the gnarled old tree, it's branches beautiful yet foreboding at the same time. "So how will they know we're here?"_

_"They already do," Hook said, keeping his hand on his sword hilt. Just then a flash of light enveloped them and when it subsided, they were surrounded by tiny fairies- wands at the ready._

_"You are forbidden in these Hallows, Captain Hook," Orange yelled. "We have not forgotten when you tried to steal from us."_

_"My apologies, ladies," Hook said with a bow, causing a Violet one to rush forward to point her wand at his throat._

_"Flattery won't save you here," Violet warned._

_"Ladies, please," David said. "We are just asking for your help. We need to get back to our families." Silver floated down and paused in front of Charming's face, examining him._

_"You're Prince Charming," Silver observed. "A favorite of Blue's."_

_"Yes, Blue is back in our home in Storybrooke. Please, will you help us," David asked. Orange floated down next to Silver and examined between the two men._

_"Maybe we should listen," Orange said to Silver. "Charming's heart is filled with true love. And Hook, his heart is likewise."_

_"The fearsome Captain Hook? In love? With who, a psychopath," Violet taunted._

_"Watch it, pixie," Hook said, his grip tightening on the hilt of his sword._

_"Easy," David said, holding out his hand. "He's in love with my daughter, Emma."_

_"The Savior," Orange said. "No wonder Hook's heart has changed so much."_

_"Yeah, only the Savior could bring that dark heart back to light," Violet chimed in. Hook shrugged. It was the truth after all. Only Emma made him feel the goodness in his heart again. His Swan, his Emma, his savior, his true love._

_"You need help leaving the island," Silver said to David. "I can feel the essence of Neverland's waters running through you."_

_"Please help him. I know I did you wrong before, but I've changed. Please,I'll do anything," Hook pleaded._

_"Stretch out your arms, both of you," Orange instructed._

* * *

David rolled up his sleeve to reveal a tattoo. It was similar to what Hook's used to look like, only the once black dagger was now his sword, and the banner which once read "Milah" now read "True Love." There was a slight glistening to it that wasn't there in Hook's tattoo, but if you looked closely, you could see it.

"Hook's tattoo," David said. "Contained pollen from the Scarlet Fire."

"What's Scarlet Fire," Emma asked.

"The rarest flower in Neverland," Hook explained. "It contains strong magic of the island."

"The fairies combined it with pixie dust, I now carry the island with me," David finished. Snow wrapped her arms around him tightly, not wanting to ask her next question.

"What was the price?"

"Nothing I wouldn't willingly give up," Hook said. "My vengeance." The three of them looked at him in surprise for more explanation. "I created my tattoo so I wouldn't lose sight of my vengeance."

"The fairies said that if Hook kills Rumplestiltskin himself, the magic of the scarlet flower will die, and so will I," David explained. Snow looked at Hook in horror.

"Don't worry, my lady. As I said, I am completely finished with my revenge on Rumplestiltskin," Hook said, looking between Emma, Henry, and his son in his arms. "I have much more important things in my life than hate."

"But how did you get off the island," Henry asked. David and Hook exchanged looks.

"That was a bit more complicated," David said. "Pan fought hard against us to prevent us from leaving the island. He's still really mad from the first time we defeated him, and you know how he is when he's mad. It took quite some time before we could find our way out of Neverland."

"And, if you wouldn't mind, that is a story for another day," Hook finished, exhaustion washing over him yet again. Emma leaned up and kissed his cheek before leaning her head back on his shoulder.

"Of course," Emma said. "You can tell us when you're ready." Henry went over to join Hook and his mother, reaching out to rub his brother's hair.

"Killian, can we go home now," Henry asked.

"I'd love nothing more, lad," Killian said with a long sigh. Killian allowed David to hold his new grandson lonely long enough to walk Emma back to the car. Killian stopped short when he saw Neal leaning against the car next to Emma's bug.

"Welcome back," Neal said coolly. Hook nodded in thanks. "You got a good kid there."

"Thank you," Hook said as he wrapped his arms around Emma and Henry's shoulders. "For taking care of everyone."

"Always will," Neal said quickly, holding back his jealousy at seeing Hook with Henry. And even though he knew he lost Emma's heart to Hook's long ago, seeing them together brought back the sting. "Look, you and David must want to get home. Henry and I can get the Jolly Roger to the docks." Hook looked at Neal warily. The last time Hook took his ship, he didn't see it for a week. Liam's fussing cued him to make a quick decision.

"I have to take Liam home, Hook. He's getting hungry," Emma said, scooping Liam out of David's arms and put him in the car seat.

"Alright, mate," Hook said.

"I'll bring Henry home after he sees Archie tonight," Neal said to Emma.

"Thanks, Neal," Emma said earnestly. After giving Killian a large hug and one more 'welcome back', Henry ran back toward the shore to get the dinghy, Neal following close behind him. Snow began dragging David toward his truck, eager to get him home.

"See you around, Hook," David called back casually, as if they didn't just spend months fighting for their lives together.

"Until later, mate," Hook called back, immediately wrapping his arms around Emma and burying his face into her neck. "Let's go home, love," he whispered into her skin.

**THE END**


End file.
